The Friendly Whales

This colorful encounter is documented in an original feature length program, “The Friendly Whales." Featuring exciting underwater footage and film taken by a crew of two from KOCE-TV’s small fishing boat positioned in the San Ignacio Lagoon of Mexico, "The Friendly Whales" is a visually stunning piece.

"The Friendly Whales” observes the whales' everyday activities which include surfacing, rolling, splashing and even spy-hopping, an activity where whales appear to be "standing" on their tails as they peer across the surface of the water. Footage even includes people actually reaching out and touching the whales, which have earned the nickname "the friendly whales."

This program presents a truly candid look at whales as they give birth to and nurture their young in the warm waters of the San Ignacio Lagoon – one of the few remaining natural environments for whales to do so without interference by human development.

Gray whales transit the California coastline by the hundreds on their way between the Bering Sea of Alaska and the coast of northern Mexico annually – one of the longest migrations of any mammal. Because gray whales swim slower than other whales and stay near shore in almost all parts of their range, they have traditionally been easy prey for whalers who have hunted them relentlessly, nearly to the point of extinction. The gray whale is currently recovering from over-harvesting, but is still classified as an endangered species by the World Conservation Union.